Little bit of Truth
by Ghost-InThe-Wall
Summary: Jimmy x Thomas, sequel to 'Toleration'. Rating may change later in story. I'll try to update whenever I can.
1. Chapter 1

A week later, Jimmy stood at the front door beside Alfred, trying to ignore the pointed glances the taller boy was giving him- he always did that when he was looking to start some irritating conversation- and instead attempting to focus on looking smart for the guests that were just pulling up outside the house in their car.

Alfred went forwards to open the door and stepped aside as their guest for the weekend, The Duke of Crowborough, climbed out and smiled widely as he set eyes on the arrangement of family and servants who stood to greet him.

"Marvellous to have you back," Lord Grantham stepped forward to shake the Duke's hand and welcome him inside. Carson ordered Jimmy to go and fetch the Duke's luggage, and he obligingly did so, trying to ignore the fact that he could feel the Duke's stare practically boring holes into the back of his skull.

Back down in the servants hall, Jimmy decided to sit next to where Thomas was reading the paper. His face had started to heal up nicely, and only a few red marks and light bruising was left to remind them of what had happened.

He smiled faintly as the First Footman took a seat.

"Who's that up to visit then?" he wondered, turning a page without looking up, "Carson was rabbiting on this morning about getting the house prepared,"

"The Duke of Crowborough apparently," Jimmy replied with a shrug. Thomas' hand froze in mid air, and he paused for a second, inhaling loudly, before reaching for a cigarette. "You know him?" Jimmy enquired, curious of the other man's reaction.

Thomas lit the cigarette and glanced over at the footman for a moment, "I know him," he replied, before taking the cigarette between his fingers and blowing smoke out the side of his mouth, "What's he doing here?"

"I imagine he's just here on a friendly visit, they said he hasn't been here since-"

Thomas blinked. "I'm aware of when he was last here, thank you Alfred."

Jimmy suppressed a sigh. He hadn't expected Thomas and himself to be acting like best friends in front of the others, of course not; they didn't want to raise suspicions, and he still wasn't one hundred percent sure of how he felt, either…but he _did_ wish that Thomas could act like they at least got on well enough with one another.

"I take it you don't like him very much then," Ivy raised her eyebrows as she walked past, carrying a bowl of something or other for Mrs Patmore. She paused at the door through to the kitchen.

"No I do not," Thomas grimaced slightly to himself, before closing the newspaper over and stood up from his seat. He pushed it in against the table before turning to leave, his fingers trailing lightly over the back of Jimmy's neck in a manner that would have looked accidental to anyone who might have seen it.

Jimmy watched him for a moment, itching to follow, but not wanting to go straight after him in case people wondered why. He hung about for a moment, chatting idly to Ivy until Mrs Patmore bustled past, crying out about cooking lunch, and then shoving the kitchen maid away and allowing Jimmy the chance to slip out of the servants hall and out the back door, where he was relieved to find Thomas leaning back against the wall and smoking yet another cigarette.

"I thought I'd find you out here," Jimmy commented, stopping beside the taller man. A smile flickered across Thomas' face and he turned to his footman.

"Afternoon," he greeted.

Jimmy smiled back, and then studied the older man's expression for a moment. "Tell me why you don't like the Duke of Crowborough. He seemed a nice enough chap,"

Thomas laughed dryly. "A nice enough chap indeed," he put the cigarette back between his lips, and Jimmy's eyes lingered on it for a moment. "Don't let him trick you," he added.

"But I don't understand-"

"Just listen to me, Jimmy," Thomas interrupted, flicking the cigarette away and leaning in closer to the footman, "He's bad news."

Jimmy swallowed, drawing his eyes up to meet Thomas' intense stare. He nodded slowly, and the Under Butler's gaze softened for a second as he pressed the briefest of kisses to Jimmy's lips, and then pulled back and started to stroll towards the door.

"Oh and Jimmy?" he glanced back over his shoulder, "Meet me back here before bed? I rather enjoy the company,"

One final, tight lipped smile, and then he was gone, back inside the house. Jimmy beamed after the empty space he'd left for a moment, before shaking himself a little. He stilldidn't have any answers about the Duke.

Damn. He was curious now, and he knew it'd bother him till he got an answer out of Thomas _one _way or another. Easier said than done, though.

Jimmy headed back inside to fetch his jacket, and see if he was needed yet.

**A/N: So this is the sequel to my other fic, 'Toleration'. This one's going to be multi-chaptered. Apologies for the lack of originality with having the Duke up to stay, but it was the only thing I could think of to keep the plot moving forward. Also, seeing as this is post Christmas Special, I thought I'd mention that what happened with Matthew is slightly different, I really don't like the idea of him being dead, so as far as we're all concerned for this story, he was just injured. I hope you enjoy reading this story, thank you for motivating me to continue writing! **


	2. Chapter 2

"Excuse me,"

Jimmy glanced up from the empty drinks tray he was carrying back to the kitchen, and was somewhat surprised to see that the Duke was standing a few feet away from him, in the hallway.

"May I be of assistance, Your Grace?" Jimmy wondered, trying to look useful. The Duke smiled a little at him and stepped forward.

"Don't worry, I wont keep you long, I see that you're busy," the Duke gestured towards the tray in Jimmy's hand, "But I was wondering...is there still a Thomas Barrow employed here?"

Jimmy narrowed his eyes slightly, remembering what Thomas had said to him about the Duke earlier that afternoon. _'He's bad news'. _Why was he asking for Thomas now? The young footman cleared his throat before answering, a little hesitantly.

"Yes...he's the Under Butler now, Your Grace. Do you wish to speak with him?" _  
_

Thankfully, The Duke shook his head politely. "No, no, I expect he's busy. I was just wondering...thank you. Good evening,"

Jimmy smiled politely and turned away, heading back down to the kitchens to hand the tray in. That was him pretty much finished for the evening, and he took joy in unbuttoning his coat for comfort, and then making his way to the Servants Hall in search of Thomas. He was leaning against the door frame, cup of tea in hand and an amused look adorning his face as he watched Alfred trying to dance with Ivy.

"When will he stop?" Jimmy muttered, rolling his eyes a little at the second footman.

Thomas chuckled, sipping his tea to hide another smirk as they watched Alfred tripping over himself and trying to keep a straight face in front of the kitchen maid who'd taken his fancy. "As long as he's got her occupied, I'm not complaining," He said.

Jimmy quirked an eyebrow. "Why's that?"

A knowing look. "Because she's still after you, of course," Thomas turned to leave, but before doing so, leaned closer to Jimmy's ear, "...And I want you all to myself,"

The Under Butler sauntered out, leaving Jimmy standing on his own with a face the colour of beetroot. He looked up to catch Mrs Patmore giving him a look, and he stared back at her, raising both eyebrows defiantly. The cook just shook her head at him with a fond chuckle and continued on with her work. He narrowed his eyes at the back of her head for a second, before deciding to go in search of something to do.

Seeing as the family would be retiring to their beds sometime soon, the staff, if not the Footmen, were effectively off duty. Jimmy suspected he was free to lounge about, or go to bed if he wished.

Though that wasn't really what he had in mind; he'd agreed to meet Thomas outside later, anyway, and he figured now counted as 'later',so Jimmy glanced around to make sure no one was watching him. Luckily, Anna and Bates were caught up in some discussion with O'Brien, Mrs Hughes and Mr Carson were nowhere to be seen and the Hallboys were playing cards,Jimmy found it easy enough to sneak out the back door, and headed over to where the older man could almost always could be found.

As expected, the dark haired man was leaning against the wall, eyes turned towards the starry sky, a cigarette balanced carefully between his lips as usual.

"Barrow," Jimmy greeted with a nod. Thomas blew out a stream of smoke, taking the cigarette between his forefinger and middle finger as he turned to look at the younger man, eyebrow perfectly arched.

"Good evening, James," he replied with a smirk that tugged at Jimmy's heart.

Suddenly Jimmy remembered that he'd been meaning to speak with Thomas about something. "Um,"

The Under Butler looked at him curiously, "You okay?"

"Yeah. Just...I had the oddest conversation with The Duke after dinner when I was bringing the tray back down,"

Thomas' eyes darkened a little, and Jimmy glanced away as he continued, "He was asking for you. I wondered if he might wish to speak to you about something but when I asked him he said no...it was very peculiar. Why don't you like him again?"

"It's nothing really," Thomas brushed it off with an uncomfortable looking smile, "I think I'd best be going back in, actually. I've got a busy day ahead of me tomorrow. Goodnight, Jimmy."

Without even a glance at the younger man, Thomas flicked his cigarette away and disappeared back into the house, leaving Jimmy standing outside on his own, feeling utterly confused. He'd known Thomas for over a year now, and he still didn't quite know where he was with that man.

One minute he was being showered with kisses and praise, the next he was given the cold shoulder.

Their relationship just didn't seem to make sense.

Jimmy sighed as he followed Thomas a few paces behind, not really intending to try and speak to him again, but being disappointed all the same at his empty seat in the Servants' hall. He was ready to retreat to his bed when Ivy came bounding over with a huge smile on her face.

"What do _you_ want?" he snapped.

The girl didn't even notice. "Alfred's asked me out to the pictures again when we both have our afternoon off!" she squeaked, her face pink, "He says I'm his best girl,"

"Good for you," Jimmy said, sounding indifferent, trying to step past her.

Mrs Patmore rolled her eyes as she walked into the servants' hall and looked at the two of them, "Is she blabbering on about Alfred again? I tell you, it's been gettin' on me last nerve! After all the time she weren't interested in him, too!"

Jimmy chuckled at the cook as he watched Ivy skipping off to talk to the stupid beanpole again. He couldn't help but feel his mood dropping a little more, though as he watched Alfred putting his arm around Ivy's shoulders. He couldn't be that bold in front of everyone with the person he cared about. He'd be hated by society, if not thrown in prison. _  
_

He didn't even know how he felt about Thomas.

It was true that his feelings had changed a lot towards the older man in the past year, but that didn't necessarily meant that he was in love...Jimmy had never had any close friends before. Maybe he was mistaking a deep amount of respect for something more? That had to be it.

He wasn't like Thomas. He didn't like men. The only man he'd ever felt differently towards _was_ Thomas and...damn. It was so confusing, and it was making his head spin, and he couldn't ask anybody for advice because it was such a taboo subject.

The young footman excused himself from the room, heading up to bed, rubbing his temples to try and straighten out his thoughts.

If he kept thinking about it, he'd end up in more bother than he already was.

He looked at his reflection for a moment. "You've got yourself in a right mess now, Jimmy. Well bloody done."

**A/N: Sorry if this is a bit rambly...I have a rough idea where I'm going with this and I need to clarify a lot of things and its all a big mess in my head. Sorry! Hope this makes some amount of sense to you though. **


End file.
